Yelkcub

http://uk.autoblog.com/2010/04/08/re...er-warns-aa%2F

Ben W Bell

Yeah, however you could argue Canadians now pay more for fuel than British. Price around $1 a litre, however cars are much less fuel efficient. They pay less per litre, but use a lot more litres for the comparative trip.

jericho

No one forces you to have a 5/6 litre truck. It's still very easy to buy fuel efficient cars....

Auld Yin

That is a very broad statement. So do you contend that a Toyota Camry a Honda Civic a Ford Focus are less fuel efficient in Canada than in the UK? I doubt that. If you're alluding to the fact that cars tend to be bigger here, then of course they use more fuel. Most Canadians are aware of fuel efficiency when buying cars but some want what they want and don't really care about the price of gas.

Yelkcub

Totally true but in addition some do and buy a smart car! I never though I would see them in Canada; when my brother-in-law came to UK he could not believe that it was really a car, now he has bought one in BC! Just shows that the price of gas is making some think twice about fuel efficency!

Steve&Tanya

Not compared those cars to the UK, but they are bringing the Fiesta over to be "more fuel efficient" but it comes with a 2.0L engine as standard, in the UK it comes with a 1.something! Why do you need a 2.0L engine in a Fiesta? Same goes for the VW Golf. I just do't get it, they don't NEED an engine that big as standard. Sure puts me off buying one.

iaink

You think? Whats my selection here for 1.3l or less compacts that will fit 4 adults comfortably or how about Diesel family cars If you want diesel then you HAVE to buy a Jetta. No one other than VW supplies non premium brand diesels, and they had to stop for a year or two due to the change in the regulations regarding cleanliness.

The average Honda Civic here is significantly less efficient than the average UK Civic, if only because (hybrid apart) the Civic comes with a minimum of a 1,8l, good for about 40mpg. None of the smaller global engines are available.

Gas consumption was a major factor in our last car selection process, and the options came down to either the 1.8 mazda 3 or honda civic based on what was available with less than a 2.0 engine, qualified for the government eco rebate and would fit a family of 2+2growing kids! That was it! Even smaller engined (korean?) options had worse mileage numbers, and a smart car aint big enough.


But gas is still far cheaper here, the cost is not related to how much you use, even if that and the distance you have to cover here to get to places does affect your annual spending on it.

Novocastrian

I've mentioned it before but the OH has driven a Yaris 5-dr manual for the last few years. It has a 1.5l gas engine and gets something like 5.1 l/100km.

She broke her right arm about three months ago so I gave her my car (an automatic). I've been driving the Yaris since then and I like it as much as she does.

So much that tomorrow I'm taking delivery of a new one.

Alan2005

It's not just size - auto's are generally more thirsty that manuals.

el_richo

Plus the distance required to travel from point A to point B and not forgetting the limited public transport forcing the utilisation of a car.

I think

canadian_critic

Running a car in Canada is far more expensive, when you take all things into consideration.

What's cheaper in Canada:
- Fuel and Oil
- No MoT (but more dangerous cars on the road here, so a bit of a negative)
- Road Tax (Nothing on dash, but I think built into the BC insurance, but at a lower rate than Britain)
- Most traffic offences. The police also seem a lot more forgiving here, which leads to appalling abuse of traffic laws and unsafe driving conditions

What's more expensive in Canada
- Insurance (up to about 500% more)
- All kinds of nasty additional taxes on new cars
- Second hand cars (seriously overpriced)
- Tax on second hand cars (and about to go through the roof in BC). In BC, you pay tax every time the car changes hands which just doesn't make sense other than as a government money making scam. If we tried the same thing with the government we'd be busted for fraud.
- Maintenance and parts

canadian_critic

Yes I really have to watch my fuel use here more so than in Britain. I have a modest SUV which delivers poor miles per gallon or hecto meters per nano cube or whatever the metric expression is. My monthly fuel cost is a bit higher than it was in Britain and I am an expert on what times in the week to purchase to avoid paying over the odds.

Novocastrian

Pretty colour, blue.

canadian_critic

LIME RULES!

Hallo there, where have you been. I've missed your consistent negativity, although not a great amount.

Hi. I missed our chats too... Although I'm not sure what was negative about this post specifically. Unless you think I just make stuff up to make people think that Canada is not a desirable place to live. It's factual but from my perspective, which is I think where your problem with me lies...

What's more expensive in Canada
- Insurance (up to about 500% more)


Nonsense -

Now come on. I'm not sure where you live but people in BC are paying around $2k - 3k for basic comprehensive insurance. Compare coverage with what you were paying in Britain and you're geting a lot less cover for a lot more dosh.

- All kinds of nasty additional taxes on new cars

Specifically?

Well there's air con tax for starters. Then there's gas guzzler tax on some cars. Plus of course in BC there's PST and GST on everything which is added on later. I'm comparing cost of car ownership in BC and Britain m'laud, so when talking about pricing, it would seem justified to mention everything here is PLUS tax

- Second hand cars (seriously overpriced)

Compared to what?

Ok fair point. I frequently see 1 -2 year old cars at nearly new prices. This is just pig ignorance or Canadians living in some kind of dreamworld. At the same time you see heaps of crap for sale at $1,000 - 2,000. Same kind of cars in that condition would be fetching £50 or so in Britain.

- Tax on second hand cars (and about to go through the roof in BC). In BC, you pay tax every time the car changes hands which just doesn't make sense other than as a government money making scam. If we tried the same thing with the government we'd be busted for fraud.

Incoherent

What's incoherent exactly? See a car in Britain and price includes tax. So when making comparison, you need to up the price in Canada to reflect this. But buy a second hand car in Britain and you just pay the agreed price. In BC you're paying tax over and over again.

This is ridiculous. In britain this would only happen if you're buying a car that was originally purchased for business and therefore VAT was claimed back. Then you'd only pay VAT on the second hand price, and only once. Someone buying the car from you in the future would not have to pay any further tax as the tax has been paid.

While I'm on a typing roll, I looked into buying a US car to save cash. Canada is one big rip-off on most things, not least cars. I can save 30- 40% buying from the states. But Canada doesn't like this so it puts in a silly process whereby you have to convert the car as if you'd importing it to Mars. Then, and this is the biggest insult, you'll get lumped with taxes (which people like you obviously love), AND the tax you'll pay on the vehicle is not reflective of the price you paid, but the price you would have paid in Canada for the same vehicle. What a scam!

- Maintenance and parts

Are you sure, or just being negative again?


Ok you got me, just being negative again

jericho

OK, so I've had a couple of tins, so I apologize if I come across more argumentative than normal.
However, we're not comparing apples for apples, so the fact that you can or can not get a 1.3l vehicle in Canadia is irrelevant.
The post I quoted was saying how cars are much less fuel efficient. It's not really an argument when you're comparing a 1.3l vehicle in the UK against a 3 or 4l Jeep here in Canada. I dont know what the bloke drives but my guess is that it's a 2l at the very least.
Anyways, unless we're comparing 2 of the same vehicles, with the same engine size, it's a non argument. If you wanna buy a vehicle with a big engine, you have to accept it's gonna cost you more in gas. The same applies in the UK too.... I used to have a Nissan Murano in the UK. The 3.5l engine was killing me, and was probably the worst vehicle decision I'd ever made, but the fuel efficiency, on a cost basis, would be better suited in Canada.